Emerge is a corten steel column from which a tree bursts forth, exploring the tension between the built environment and the natural world. Inspired by the nearby groves of Marymoor Park, the work bridges the urban landscape of its site, Piper Apartments, with the organic vitality of the Piper Willow (Salix drummondiana Hookeriana piperi, recently renamed Hooker’s Willow).
Physically, a column transmits the weight of the structure above it to the elements below—a form of compression that is contradicted in my design. While a traditional column bears weight, my column bursts at the seams, released from its physical function and shattered by nature itself.
Piper Willow (Salix drummondiana Hookeriana piperi) was recently renamed Hooker’s Willow. Cast bronze willow catkins and pods shaped like Forbidden Fruit accent the tree, merging natural and mythic forms. Illuminated from within and from its concrete seating base, Emerge invites viewers to pause and reflect on the interplay of structure and growth.
